


4 times buck was in denial about being a father (+1 time he was loud and proud about it)

by coupe_de_foudre



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: 4+1 Things, Developing Relationship, Domestic Fluff, Evan "Buck" Buckley is Christopher Diaz's Parent, Family Feels, Fluff, Kissing, M/M, Protective Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), no beta we die like men, this got out of hand
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-15 22:07:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29071515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coupe_de_foudre/pseuds/coupe_de_foudre
Summary: “So you just, went along with us being married?” he questions and, although he tries to come off as casual, even he can hear the sharp undertone.In his defence, Buck does blush at that. “It seemed easier than explaining that I’m just a friend who’s buying your groceries because you can’t cook to save your life.”The instant retort of,“You’re more thanjusta friend.”comes to mind but Eddie swallows it down, shaking his head and trying to laugh it off.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Comments: 41
Kudos: 662





	4 times buck was in denial about being a father (+1 time he was loud and proud about it)

**Author's Note:**

> it's been 4 days and i'm total trash for this ship (and christopher, obviously) so i had to write this. the title sucks, i know, and the plot strays far from the original idea but it's literally just family fluff so.... i hope it's okay?
> 
> inspired entirely by eddie's "buck, there's nobody in this world i trust with my son more than you."

**one.**

“Remind me again how you got to be thirty-three and haven’t ended up in hospital with food poisoning?” Buck laughs, shutting Eddie’s fridge and sending him an incredulous look. He holds up a tub of cream, giving it a shake for emphasis. “Seriously, this is a month out of date!”

“Hey,” Eddie defends, grabbing the cream and throwing it out, “I try, okay?”

“Sure.” Buck snorts. “No wonder Christopher always asks me to cook when I’m here.” He grabs his wallet and keys, pocketing both before heading out. “C’mon, we’re going to the store so you don’t both starve.”

Reluctantly, Eddie follows, grumbling about how his son is a traitor. He flicks the lights off, not far behind Buck as he swoops Christopher up into his arms on their way out of the house. Buck’s saying something to Christopher, and Eddie doesn’t need to be in earshot to guess what it’s about; not with the way Christopher sends him an amused look and consequently bursts into a fit of giggles.

Eddie wishes he could remain moody, but the way Buck’s smiling at his son as he buckles him into his car warms his heart and a smile soon finds its way onto his face. Sliding into the driver’s seat, catching the keys Buck throws his way, Eddie wills his thoughts away before he says something that’ll make things awkward.

It’s no surprise that he has a crush on his best friend. He has done for a long time, now. How can anyone blame him, though? What, with the way Buck is always there, all up in is life, cares so deeply for not just him but his damn son too? In fact, hell, Buck visits Eddie’s Abuela off his own back, spending hours talking about her life and sharing recipes.

They’re practically married. Only they’re not even dating.

And Buck probably doesn’t feel the same way.

“Right,” he says, clearing his throat and glancing over his shoulder to check on Christopher as Buck slides into the passenger side. “We all set?”

“Yeah,” Buck smiles his way, and Eddie has to look away because the fondness on his face is too much for him at the moment. “You ready, buddy?” Buck asks Christopher, raising his hand to the back of the car. Christopher cheers in agreement, high-fiving Buck.

The store is fairly quiet, luckily, which means they get around in record time. It’s just as they’re delayed in the sweet aisle, Buck holding Christopher as they both scour the shelves for candy despite Eddie’s protests that they _both_ have plenty already, that a woman comes up to them. She’s short, only coming up to Eddie’s chin, with perfectly straightened, auburn hair that falls past her shoulders, and looks like the picture-perfect suburban mother.

“Evan?” she says, stepping up to the trio with a cautious smile. Eddie frowns but, before he can speak up, Buck swivels around and his eyes widen once he spots the woman.

“Carolyn?” he gasps, breaking into a warm smile. “How are you? It’s been so long!”

The woman, Carolyn, nods. “Your mother’s birthday...five years ago?”

“That long? Wow…” Buck hoists Christopher up his side, absently pressing a kiss to the boy’s temple. He probably didn’t even realise he’s done it, but Carolyn does and her expression shifts from happy to confused surprise in the blink of an eye. It’s then that her gaze shifts behind Buck, to Eddie, and he smiles awkwardly as he takes a step forward.

“You want me to take him?” Eddie asks, resting a hand on the small of Buck’s back whilst running his fingers through Christopher’s hair.

Christopher leans into his touch but shakes his head with a pout. “No! I want Buck. He’s getting me sweets.”

Eddie chuckles, unable to fault his son’s logic, and since Buck insists he’s fine, he backs off.

Carolyn is watching them, head tilted at Eddie until realisation passes over her face and she grins over at Buck once more – this time considerably more excited. “Oh, sweetheart, congratulations!”

The confusion that crosses over Buck’s face would be laughable if Eddie wasn’t also lost in the conversation.

It’s soon cleared up, though, as Carolyn continues, “I was just speaking with your mother. She never said you were married! And is this your son?” she leans in to smile at Christopher, who giggles at the attention. “He’s lovely.”

Buck speaks up, before Eddie can protest. “I- no, we’re not-”

Carolyn waves her hand, dismissively, “No need to explain. It’s okay, I know what it’s like, I understand.” Eddie holds back a laugh; he doubts she understands at all. “I best be off, John’s waiting in the car for me. But I would love to come around some time,” she lightly pinches Christopher’s cheeks, “and get to know this little fella.”

“Uh…yeah, we’ll have to arrange something.” Buck mumbles, brows furrowed as she leans up to pat his cheek affectionately.

She slips past them then, coming up to Eddie. Her smile is soft, nothing but warmth radiating from her whole presence and Eddie can’t stay annoyed with her. She lays a heavy hand on his shoulder and squeezes. “You’ve lucked out with him, all the girls wanted to sweep him away at school. Take care of them for me.”

All he can do is nod, feeling like a fish out of water as he stands opening and closing her mouth, watching her walk away. It feels like a lifetime before his stunned silence is broken, Buck’s nervous laughter snapping his attention back to his best friend and his son stood just behind him.

“Sorry about that.” Buck shrugs, looking sheepish.

“Who was she?”

“Aunt Carolyn.” Buck says, but then frowns, “Well, we called her that as kids but I’m pretty sure she has no blood relation to any of us…”

Eddie shakes his head, biting back a smile. “So you just, went along with us being married?” he questions and, although he tries to come off as casual, even he can hear the sharp undertone.

In his defence, Buck does blush at that. “It seemed easier than explaining that I’m just a friend who’s buying your groceries because you can’t cook to save your life.”

The instant retort of, _“You’re more than_ just _a friend.”_ comes to mind but Eddie swallows it down, shaking his head and trying to laugh it off.

“I can cook.” he says instead, sounding like an indignant child. Buck snorts.

“No you can’t, Dad.” Christopher says proudly, breaking out into another fit of giggles when Buck mutters, “Damn right, kid.” before turning their attention back to the sweets they’d been looking at.

**two.**

This woman’s been flirting with Buck ever since they turned up at the scene. He doesn’t even think she lives here; she’s probably a nosey neighbour or something. Normally, it wouldn’t annoy him so much – after all, as a firefighter, flirtatious comments are an occupational hazard – but polite smiles and small talk can only get his message across so far.

He’s not interested. And she’s not getting it.

“I don’t suppose you have the time, do you?” she asks, batting her eyelashes up at him as he rises from the ground. The fire’s long gone, people milling around the street talking about the commotion, a heavy humidity hanging in the air. He wants to say no. Tell her he has to get back. But that isn’t exactly true and Bobby would chew his ass out for being unnecessarily rude.

“Sure.” he says, pulling out his phone. He tenses when perfectly manicured nails dance delicately along his arm, trailing up his muscle with no subtlety whatsoever, and he suddenly wishes he hadn’t thrown his jacket inside the truck at the first chance he’d gotten. Buck swears he can feel eyes burning into the back of his head and, if he were to turn around right now, there’s no doubt in his mind that he’d find Eddie glaring his way.

Forcing a light smile onto his face when the woman chuckles sweetly, flicking her hair and sending a waft of artificial strawberries his way, he swipes the lock on his screen. Instantly, he’s met with his wallpaper: Christopher smiling goofily, eyes crossed and tongue half-sticking out. A chuckle escapes him before he can catch it. He’d taken it last weekend, when he and Eddie had taken Christopher out for a picnic in the park, catching the last rays of the summer sun before autumn was upon them.

“Oh,” the hand on Buck’s arm stills, “you’re married?”

Buck frowns, but then understands. “No, no-”

A slight glimmer of hope returns to the woman’s face and she leans in, shamelessly looking at the picture on his phone again. “Divorced then.” she says, and it’s not really a question. “He’s adorable, looks just like you.” Buck does a double take, squinting at Christopher’s face and seeing nothing but Eddie; Eddie’s dorky expression, Eddie’s smile, Eddie’s nose.

“He isn’t my son.” Buck feels the need to clarify, cutting the woman off before she can make another false comment just to try and get his number.

“Oh?” she glances between the phone screen and Buck, clearly confused. Buck sighs, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

Throwing a glance behind him and scanning the crowd nearby, Buck finds Eddie crouching down by a young girl who’s sitting on someone’s wall looking scared. He’s smiling down at her, hands on her knees as he checks her over for bruises, when suddenly he makes a funny face and has the girl laughing in seconds. As though feeling eyes on him, Eddie swivels around and wastes no time in finding Buck. Their eyes meet and Eddie’s smile only widens, the love and affection so strong that Buck feels his heart swell twice in size.

“No.” Buck says to the woman, smiling back at Eddie, “He’s my _boyfriend’s_ son.” (and, wow, doesn’t that feel absolutely amazing to finally be able to say?). Turning back around to her, he doesn’t miss the flood of emotions that pass over her face – confusion, realisation and, finally, disappointment.

She clears her throat, glancing over Buck’s shoulder in search of whoever he’d been smiling at. “Well,” she smiles up at him, her hand falling from his arm reluctantly, “he’s a very lucky man.”

Buck shakes his head, the words, _“No,_ I’m _the lucky one.”_ on the tip of his tongue. He holds back, though, letting the woman walk off towards a group of people across the street. Once she’s definitely gone, he lets out a deep sigh and sags against the side of the truck.

Not even two minutes pass before Eddie is standing in front of him, smirk playing on his lips. “Secret admirer?” he asks, smug look on his face unfairly attractive. Buck groans, pinching the bridge of his nose and glaring up at the night’s sky.

“I wish people would stop doing that.”

“Doing what? Hitting on you?” Eddie takes a step closer, making Buck straighten as his back now presses against the truck.

“Yeah,” Buck sighs, trying to steady his breathing when Eddie’s eyes flicker down to his lips. He purposefully swipes his tongue along them, watching in amusement as Eddie’s eyes darken. “I’m gonna buy a neon sign that says “I have a boyfriend, idiots!” on it and then I’ll never be bothered again.” He’s joking, of course, but the idea is funny and he can’t help but start laughing at the mental image that pops into his head.

Eddie, however, isn’t laughing.

He glances up at Buck, now standing so close that his nose is brushing along Buck’s jaw. His voice is hoarse, almost a low growl, as he rises up to whisper in Buck’s ear. “There’s plenty of ways to make sure people know you’re…” he begins to trail wet kisses down Buck’s throat until he comes to a stop at the sensitive spot by the hollow of his throat, grazing his teeth over the area and smirking as he feels Buck shudder underneath him, “ _mine_.”

“Shit.” Buck chokes out, his laughter long gone as he clings desperately to Eddie’s shoulders and throws his head back, offering himself up for his boyfriend to claim.

Eddie chuckles, voice so deep now that it sends arousal straight through Buck’s body. “Not now.” he says and Buck’s embarrassed by the needy whine that leaves him as he grapples at Eddie’s back to keep him from stepping away. Eddie smiles, leaning in to steal a quick kiss and pats his hip twice. “Later.”

It’s a promise that Buck’s going to hold him to.

**three.**

Christopher buries his head into Buck’s chest when he picks him up from the couch, Eddie pausing the movie as he watches him head towards Christopher’s bedroom. It’s almost eleven now, and Christopher has been drifting in and out of sleep for the past hour.

“You want a beer?” Eddie asks in a hushed tone, stretching as he stands from the couch too. Buck shoots him a grateful smile over his shoulder, nodding.

It’s not the first time he’s taken Christopher to bed so he has no trouble at all in getting him to his room, pulling back the covers (spaceships today) and laying him down. He gently shuffles the pillow below his head, making it as comfortable as possible, before pulling away.

Or, at least, he attempts to pull away. A small hand reaches out and wraps fingers around his wrist before he gets the chance to.

“Sorry,” he says, “did I wake you?”

Christopher shakes his head but Buck doesn’t believe him for a second. “Did the movie finish?”

Buck smiles, reaching out to brush a few stray strands of hair from the boy’s face. “Not yet, bud. You want us to save it for tomorrow?” Christopher nods, his eyes closed as he struggles to stay awake. “Alright, I’ll tell your Dad. Now you get some sleep, yeah?” Another nod. “Good. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Dropping a kiss to Christopher’s forehead, he’s taken aback by what the boy whispers half-asleep. “G’night, Papa.”

Holding his breath, his heart feeling like it’s about to burst into pieces in his chest, Buck turns around to leave the bedroom and finds Eddie leaning in the doorway, a halo of golden light behind him almost as soft as the smile that’s currently taken over his face. Buck quietly joins him, careful to avoid the squeaky floorboard halfway through the room.

Eddie watches Christopher for a second before pulling Buck out of the room, clicking the door shut behind them. Buck wastes no time in cornering him against the wall, thankful for his height advantage when he tries to look as accusatory as possible whilst his heart is still melting with an overflow of love. “Did you tell him to say that?”

“What makes you think I did?” Eddie scoffs, smirking up at him. He makes no move to escape Buck’s entrapment, perfectly happy to let himself be pressed up against the wall. Buck sighs.

“I’m not his dad.”

That seems to change Eddie’s tune and he straightens himself, glaring into Buck’s eyes with a fiery defiance. “Christopher suggested it. He wanted to know what he could call you, I suggested ‘Papa’ because it would be less confusing for him.” A hand comes up to cup Buck’s jaw, pulling his face down until he’s inches from Eddie’s lips. This time, when he speaks, Eddie’s voice is laced with fondness. “And, for the record, you’re a great dad to Christopher.”

Before Buck can argue, he’s drawn into a deep kiss of teeth and tongue, arms curling around his shoulders and holding him close until all doubt is forgotten and Buck relaxes into Eddie’s body, kissing back passionately.

From then on, the name sticks.

**four.**

“Mr Buckley?” a woman’s voice echoes down the line and Buck blinks his eyes open, double-checking the caller ID. It’s not a number he recognises.

“Yeah, sorry, that’s me.” he says, pushing himself up from the couch and clicking his back. He’d been enjoying a nice, mid-afternoon nap on a rare day off. “What can I do for you?”

“It’s Christopher.” the woman says and that definitely wakes Buck up.

“Christopher? Is he okay? What happened?”

The woman’s voice remains calm as she explains that, for the most part, Christopher is fine; it just appears to be a bug. He’s only thrown up once but he needs to be picked up and they’ve already tried to call Eddie and got no answer. Buck swears under his breathe. He must be out on a call.

“How come you’re calling me?” he asks because, as far as he knew, Eddie had listed his Abuela as the person to call when he’s not available.

“Mr Diaz rang up a few months ago,” she explains patiently, “he changed you to the second emergency contact.”

Buck doesn’t know what to do with that information. He can’t tell whether he’s flattered or pissed off – mostly, he’s only annoyed that Eddie hadn’t told him about the change.

“Okay,” rubbing his finger and thumb at his temples, he mentally calculates the quickest route to Christopher’s school. “I should be there in twenty minutes.”

Once he’s hung up, he scrolls to Eddie’s number and hits dial, throwing on his jacket and sneakers before rushing out to his car. He prays that the traffic isn’t too bad, but considering it’s a Friday afternoon her guesses it probably will be.

Eddie picks up on the second ring, which surprises him. “Buck?”

“Are you on call?” he asks first, putting his keys in the car and starting up the engine.

“On our way back now,” Eddie says, and Buck can just faintly hear the truck’s godawful engine in the background. “Why?”

“It’s no big deal.” he assures, pulling the car out onto the road as he balances the phone between his ear and shoulder. “Christopher’s sick, school rang. They did try to ring you, but don’t worry about it because I’m on my way.”

“Is he okay?”

“He’s fine.” Buck smiles. “Just a sickness bug, apparently.” He hears Eddie sigh in relief over the phone and his smile only widens. “Hey, how come I’m his new emergency contact?”

Eddie is quiet for a moment and Buck can imagine the conflicted look on his face right now. No doubt, Eddie probably just forgot to tell him about it and now he’s panicking and feeling guilty. That wasn’t Buck’s intention but he wasn’t the one who responsible.

“Well, why wouldn’t you be?”

Buck shrugs before realising Eddie can’t see him. “I’m hardly the best second choice. What if I’m not available too?”

“Abuela is still listed. But you can get there quicker if you’re not working.” Eddie says defiantly and the stubbornness in his voice only causes Buck to chuckle.

“It’s just a big step, is all.” he admits, knowing it’s stupid to find it so important yet he’s totally unable to stop the dread he’s already feeling from being named as responsible for Christopher. It’s a huge trust put in him and he isn’t sure if he’s ready for it.

Eddie sighs, voice gentle as he says, “Cariño, you _are_ my fiancé.” It’s said so matter-of-factly, and with such love, that almost all of Buck’s worries fade away. “Buck, I trust you. Christopher trusts you. You’re more than capable to do this.”

Sometimes, the way Eddie can seemingly read his mind (even without being there in person to see the panic on his face) freaks Buck out. It’s like they’re one in the same. It’s like Eddie understands him inside and out.

He lets out a shaky breath, loosening his grip on the steering wheel. “Yeah, okay.” A smile creeps onto his face and he finally relaxes. “Be safe at work, yeah? I’ve got this.”

“I will. Love you.”

“Love you too.” he practically whispers before hanging up, dropping his phone into the backseat.

If he still didn’t believe he was ready for such a big responsibility, the huge grin that split across Christopher’s face when he realised who had come to pick him up definitely convinced him.

**+one.**

It’s Christopher’s middle school graduation and Buck is sat comfortably to Eddie’s left, their thighs pressed close together due to the limited space (or that’s the excuse Eddie’s going with, anyway).

“Can you see him?” he whispers in Buck’s ear, trying to get a glimpse of his son hidden away on the stage. Buck shakes his head, pouting.

“I thought he was one of the tallest in his class?”

Eddie shrugs, “So did I.”

They sit and watch patiently as the principal does his speech before moving on the listing the students graduating, each student standing as their name is called and coming to shake his hand. Buck is fidgeting constantly as the kids before Christopher do their thing and Eddie can’t help but shake his head in fond amusement at his fiancé.

Finally, after what feels like hours squished into this stuffy hall, he hears “Christopher Diaz!” called into the microphone and his face splits into a proud grin as he sees his son stand up near the back of the stage and head towards his principal. His robes are hanging low, draped over his lanky frame, and his hat now sits tilted on his head. But Eddie couldn’t care less. He lets out a loud “Whoop!” amongst the claps that are echoing through the hall.

Buck, however, jumps up onto his feet and cups his mouth, “That’s my son!” he cheers, making sure he’s the loudest in the room. Eddie sinks down in his seat, face flushed, as eyes all turn towards Buck. But Buck doesn’t care; he continues to shout words of praise to their son with the widest smile on his face.

“Buck!” he hisses, grabbing at his hand and tugging him back into his seat before he can cause more of a scene. Buck’s laughing now, telling everyone around them that it’s his son and, if Eddie wasn’t so embarrassed, he’d be overwhelmed with how sweet the whole thing is. “Shut up, would you?”

Buck snorts, “I will not.”

He points to Christopher, turning it into an exaggerated wave that Christopher returns just as enthusiastically and, as Eddie takes in Christopher’s blinding smile he lets himself relax. After all, if Christopher isn’t embarrassed by the extra attention then why should Eddie be? What counts is that Buck clearly loves his son unconditionally, right?

“I can’t believe he’s all grown up.” Buck whines, wiping at fake tears and leaning heavily into Eddie’s side. Eddie rolls his eyes, wrapping an arm around Buck.

“He’s not even in high-school yet.” he retorts, but Buck just chuckles and turns to press a kiss to his cheek. “You’re such a sap.”

“Yeah,” Buck murmurs, brushing his nose against the ticklish spot behind Eddie’s ear and smiling, “but I’m your sap.”

Eddie’s heart swoops in his chest. He’ll never get tired of hearing that. Sometimes, he still can’t believe that he got so lucky.

Twisting to meet Buck’s eyes, taking in the flush of his cheeks and the way the blue of his eyes seems shades darker under the hall’s flickering lights, he smiles back. “Damn right you are.” he says, pride pouring out of every word, before sliding his fingers under the curve of Buck’s jaw and coaxing him into a kiss the solidify the fact.

They keep it brief, all too aware of their current company, but Buck stays close and rests his head on Eddie’s shoulder as they watch the rest of the ceremony, waiting for the end when Christopher comes rushing over to them and crushes them both in a warm hug.

 _Yeah,_ Eddie thinks as he watches Buck scoop Christopher up and swing him around with a hearty laugh. His little family. _I’m pretty damn lucky._

**Author's Note:**

> please lemme know what y'all think?! i've never written for these two before and, like the idiot i am, i decided a 3k fic was the sensible way to start xD
> 
> tysm for reading <3


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